Day One of 365

UPDATE (1/16/12): Will Hewett’s TED talk is finally available. I embedded it below.

I have been contemplating hopping on the Project 365 bandwagon for some time now. Essentially, it entails taking at least one photograph a day for an entire year. Over the past several months I’ve been inspired watching my writer wife working on her “morning pages.” She spends 30 minutes every day writing stream of conscious style – the content doesn’t really matter. It’s all about getting the creative juices flowing and making a daily practice of it.

So, why now? Why not wait until January 1st or some other significant date like so many other people do? I recently attended TEDxRainier here in Seattle, WA. It was a day filled with numerous 10-15 minute inspirational talks. Some resonated more with me than others.

One in particular really hit home – Will Hewett. His daily ritual is not about writing or taking pictures, but about singing. He set out to sing for 15 minutes straight every day for a year. Words don’t really matter, he uses a made up language. It’s just about vocalizing. You can read more about him and his Sing15 practice on his website, Vocata.

Will’s TED talk was the final nudge that I needed.

There are several sites where photographers can participate with others in a project 365. It seems just about every online photo community has their own version of it. I decided to host it myself since I have this blog. Some posts in my new 365 category may include a little note but I suspect it may often just be a photo.

I’m not sure what to expect from this experience. I definitely don’t want to place a bunch of rules around it, aside from the one – take at least one photo a day. Some days I may spend hours playing around with different shots, while other days I may just snap only one. Even if I can’t manage to post the photo on the same day, I’ll still take at least one.

So, although it’s the middle of the month on a not-so-significant date (for me), November 14th, 2011 is Day One of 365.

16 Comments:

This is a very cool visual version of morning pages! I have a very non-artsy friend (VERY) who trudged through the ‘morning pages’ every day for a year-starting out with a skeptical resignation. It changed her life in so many ways, some big and others were more subtle. Aphoto a day is very interesting and I’ll be excited to see what happens and hear the stories. Very cool!!

Thanks! I have to admit, I do fear a little bit about trying to come up with 365 different shots. I guess if nothing else, at the end of the year I’ll be able to easily see what my “style” looks like. :)